


The Court

by sugargaysides



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Steampunk, Blood and Violence, Established Relationship, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, M/M, Minor Character Death, Sympathetic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Sympathetic Deceit Sanders
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-11
Updated: 2020-02-05
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:41:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21755467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sugargaysides/pseuds/sugargaysides
Summary: In a time when technology takes over society, it is up to the city to either stop it or support it.Virgil, a creator of the most practical machines, wants to convince his fellow citizens of the beauty of technology. Sadly, most of them are awfully stubborn so Virgil has to take drastic measures.Meanwhile, in a place down underground, the poor are trying their best to bring back their previous life when they still had their jobs before machines replaced them.Will they all be able to reach their goal?
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders/Deceit Sanders
Kudos: 34





	1. chapter 1

Tools twisting and turning, the sound of iron hitting metal could be heard throughout the room. Cogs were implemented and the tempature rose.

An exhausted Virgil took of his gloves and swiped the sweat off his forehead. Building a new machine for four days straight sucked the energy right out of him. Thankfully, he wasn't alone.  
Roman helped him out a lot when he forgot to take breaks. His boyfriend reminded him to relax for a bit, brought him coffee and talked to him about nothing without distracting him from his work.  
There was also Paris, his best friend. The little, bell-shaped robot handed him his tools so Virgil didn't have to get up from his chair and the buzzing sound, that Paris made when he flew around the room, was strangely calming.

"Darling, I'm home!"

Virgil whipped his head around at the sound of Roman's voice. The older man just got back from another trip to the city. Roman had been searching for a suitable job for several months now, without success. Sure, his parents sent him money every now and then but he'd rather work on his own. Sadly, getting a job was hardly possible since machines became popular. 

Roman entered Virgil's office, that was also his bedroom, and greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. Virgil knew the look in his eyes all too well.

"No luck, huh?" Virgil asked, already knowing the answer. Roman shook his head, sad eyes gazing at his lover's goggles, "You'll find one eventually, don't give up." 

Roman lifted a hand to tiredly pet Paris' metal cover. The robot let out buzzing noises in response, seemingly happy to be paid attention to. Roman rubbed off on him, Virgil supposed.

"No matter how hard I look, not a single employer has a job for me! Is it me? No, it can't be. I'm perfectly suitable for any job," Roman said, looking exhausted as he tried to stay upright by supporting himself with the desk. Virgil reluctantly got up from his creeking chair and led the still ranting man to his bed. 

"Oh, and another thing- what are you doing?" Roman just realized where he was and looked up at the taller man as he was being tucked into bed. Virgil silently smiled down at him, his eyes not visible behind those goggles of his. Roman found them endearing on his lover, though he wished he was able to see his beautiful, bright eyes right now. 

When Virgil was satisfied with Roman's state, he returned back to his desk and assured him, "Get some rest, Ro. I've got to finish this tonight," at Roman's disappointed whine he added, "don't worry, I'll join you later."

Roman seemed okay with his response as he rolled over in the blanket burrito. Paris flew over to him and his little propeller slowly stopped whirring after he landed on the bed next to the human.  
Before Virgil returned to his work, he stared a little longer at his lover and his best friend. 

He's glad he wasn't alone anymore.

\- 

"Get back here, you rascals!"

Two little boys giggled at the man chasing them, not an ounce of fear in their bodies. Picking up speed, they easily outran the man with his wallet in one of their hands. 

Remy clutched onto the wallet tightly. The 14-year-old was the one who used his slingshot on the unsuspecting adult distracting him before his best friend, Emile, fished the wallet out of his pocket. Those two made a great team. 

The man long stopped chasing them, cursing like a sailor. But the boys were used to it. Living with so many adults who were not afraid to use the unholiest of swear words made the children unfazed. Their innocence had been taken away from them a long time ago.

Running around a corner they noticed the man in front of them too late. Before the two could crash into him, he'd already picked them up by the collars of their worn-down shirts and dragged them with him. 

"Where the hell were you two?" 

The boys looked up, only to see Remus with a mad look on his face. Emile looked down in shame silently while his friend was squirming and yelling at the older man to let go. Of course, he didn't.

They reached a set of stairs at the end of a dark alley. Descending carefully, not wanting to slip on the moss that grew at the edge of the stairs, the three could already see the dirty sheet that blocked the way. Remus let go of Emile before he pushed the sheet away. 

Behind the sheet, there were faint lights along the moss-covered walls that led them to a clearing. The place was filled with tents, each belonging to different people, people like them. The ceiling consisted of another tent, bigger than the rest but it provided enough shelter. Weed was growing out the tiles of the ground but it the most of them weren't bothered by it. Men, women, children and the like loitered around the place. Talking and laughing were one half of the group while the other sat in silence, mourning the loss of the good life they once led. 

They arrived at The Court.

Remus saw with an excited glint in his eyes his leader, his friend, his mentor. The man wore his hat once again over his eyes, making him look intimidating while he smoked his pipe. Feet up on a cardboard box, he looked as relaxed as always.  
Remus dropped Remy on the ground, ignoring his offended yell, and made his way to the older man. 

"Hey, Dee! Whatcha doin'?" Remus watched as the man in question slowly lifted his head and let out a smoke cloud in response, "I brought the kids back, just like you wanted me to!" 

Dee stared at him for a second before he grinned up at him, "Yes, Remus. You did good." 

Remus smiled back at him gleefully before he fell to the ground beside him. Leaning his head on Dee's shoulder, they both watched as Remy and Emile ran to their friend, Dice, and presented her the wallet as if it was a trophy. Maybe to them it was.

Remus let out a contented sigh as he felt Dee lean his own head against his. 

Their life was not perfect. But at least they had each other.

\- 

"Have you grown tired of always needing to clean the floor yourself? Well, this machine is going to revolutionize the way you live!"

The city was bustling with all kinds of people. Most were in a hurry, needing to go to work, while others stopped to look at what Patton had in store for them. Literally. An array of machines were placed in front of him as he tried to catch the other citizens' attention. 

In full honesty, he never wanted to sell stuff like machines. He actually disliked them almost as much as the gangs that disturbed the city. Patton believed that machines were the cause of today's world problems. More and more people were kicked out into the streets because machines took over their jobs. And when people didn't have jobs then they didn't have money. And without customers with money, Patton couldn't earn more money and then he would end up like the rest of them-

He muttered to himself, "Calm down, Pat. Nothing's gonna happen to you," he took the cash of a customer as they bought one of the cleaning robots and waved at them when they left, "You're not gonna end up like one of *those*."

The sun began to set. 

He didn't earn much money so far.


	2. chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Home. 
> 
> Roman never considered it a home, not really. That big house with the cold rooms and pestering servants and annoying rivals and his parents. Roman was tired of it all but he never dared say anything about it. He had lived with it for 22 years now. He could do a few more years.

"Ro, I'm heading out!"

It was early morning when Virgil decided he needed more supplies for a new machine. With his scrolls of blueprints in both his hands he kissed a barely awake Roman before making his way out of the apartment. 

While it was very early, there were already heaps of people bustling around the city. Most of them were office workers hurrying to work. Meanwhile, Virgil had all the time in the world but he preferred to go home as soon as possible. Goggles over his eyes and hands full, he stumbled through the streets, occasionally bumping into other citizens and he barely had the time to apologize before they got lost in the crowd. 

In the midst of walking he didn't notice another person going his way and the two of them bumped into each other. Virgil fell to the ground and his prints were scattered. Sheepishly, he tried to gather them all as quickly as possible but before he could pick up the last scroll, a dress shoe stepped on it. Virgil slowly looked up through his goggles just to see a well-dressed man wearing glasses and a tie (an office worker then?) standing over him. The man glared down at him and Virgil felt like a small child, the way he wanted to cower under the stranger's gaze. 

Before he could say anything, the man had already taken a few steps away from him.

"Watch where you're going, boy," he snapped, before continuing on his way to work. Virgil was still on the ground, dumbfounded, and only snapped out of it when a couple of kids almost ran over his last print. With a sigh he stood up and made his way to the store, more carefully this time.

-

It took another hour before Roman woke up for real. He knew Virgil would be gone for longer than needed, the younger was easily distracted by the many machines in the city. 

Grunting, Roman sat up and stretched and yawned and stretched some more before finally getting up to start his day.   
With Virgil gone there was no need for making coffee and Paris only waved him good morning with his extended robot arm before tidying up Virgil's desk. 

It was a quiet morning. Or early noon. Roman really didn't care. All he cared about was getting some more beauty sleep but unfortunately, his parents didn't allow him that. So after two hours of getting ready and sulking on Virgil's bed, Roman left the apartment to take a ride home.

Home. 

Roman never considered it a home, not really. That big house with the cold rooms and pestering servants and annoying rivals and his parents. Roman was tired of it all but he never dared say anything about it. He had lived with it for 22 years now. He could do a few more years. 

It felt like forever when he finally arrived at his parents' house. Nothing changed. Not much could change in a month. The house was still big, the rooms were still cold, the servants were still pestering him, his rival was still annoying and his parents were, unfortunately, still there.

Roman nodded to the servants, ignoring them trying to help with things he didn't need help with because he was an adult and he didn't need to be treated like a child anymore. His parents were nowhere to be seen but his rival? He was there. He was always there to annoy him.

Pryce Lancaster was his personal rival ever since they had first met. For some reason, the younger had always had something against him and he challenged Roman to every activity he knew about.

Hand-to-hand combat? Roman beat his ass without breaking a sweat.  
Singing? Roman left the audience speechless even though he had a sore throat.  
Fishing? Roman accidentally discovered a new kind of fish.

However, Pryce deserved more respect when it came to fencing. Roman had to admit the younger had extraordinary skills in sword-fighting and was an honorable rival for Roman. It usually ended in ties between them but Roman did have more wins. And Pryce never liked that. 

So naturally, Roman knew that Pryce's self-proclaimed rivalry stemmed from his jealousy over everything Roman could achieve. And honestly, Roman was more than fine with that. It brought a little excitement in his dull life whenever he visited his parents. At least something could keep him entertained.

Speaking of...

"Hey, Kingsley! Let's fight!"

Roman turned around only to find Pryce strutting up to him. Keeping down the tight smile that wanted to creep on his face, Roman acknowledged his rival with a nod. However, the younger man seemingly mistook his nod for a nod of agreement so he immediately unsheated his fencing sword. Roman was empty-handed but he found that wasn't a problem as a servant brought Roman's own sword to him. Ignoring the tiny feeling of disgust at the servant's instinctive actions, Roman took on a fighting stance, sword ready in hand as he saw Pryce doing the same.

"Let the fight begin..."

-

Dee walked around The Court, stopping a few times when the children wanted to tell them about their day and the things they had seen (usually nothing good) and he took out his mechanical pipe as he entered Remus' tent. The man was sleeping, Remy not with him this time, and Dee saw it as the perfect opportunity to take advantage of Remus' silent state. 

He sat himself down beside his friend, blowing out a small cloud of smoke as he slightly leaned into Remus' curled up body. The younger man stirred in his sleep but didn't move otherwise. Smoking blissfully, feeling nothing but calm in the other man's sleeping presence and his own head quiet for once, he didn't notice the little girl poking her head through the tent's "door". 

"Mr. Dee?" 

Said man immediately perked up from where he sat only to see Dice trembling in front of him. Knowing what the problem was, Dee pocketed his pipe before picking the girl up and leaving Remus' tent. He entered his own and tucked Dice in his bed before he laid down himself.

The young girl was plagued by nightmares she had no control over and Dee was apparently the only one who could help her. Truthfully, he didn't do much except hold her while she slept but that seemed to be enough. Dee was more than happy to be of help, especially when it came to his children.

"Thank you, Mr. Dee," mumbled Dice before she drifted off to a dreamless sleep, and she was fast asleep when Dee responded,

"You're welcome, my child."


	3. chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cuddling into his chest, Roman let out a content sigh as he felt Virgil brush his thin, long fingers in his hair. Through another window, the moon shone down at them and Roman didn't need to look up to know his lover looked gorgeous in the moonlight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the slow update! i was also working on some other works of mine :P
> 
> hope you enjoy this rollercoaster!
> 
> TW: BLOOD, VIOLENCE, SWEARING

Living in The Court had its up's and down's.

To Remus, it might have been the best years of his life, so far. He had a big family, people who were dear to him and he had sworn to protect them with his life. Sure, he still cared for Roman as any brother would but The Court? They were everything Remus could ask for.

Especially, Dee.

The older man was his favorite out of all of them. His best friend. His bedmate. His maybe-future lover.  
Dee took him in when he didn't know where to go, taught him everything he needed to know, made him smile each and every day. 

That was why he was standing there in this moment, smiling like there was no tomorrow as Dee took out the bastard who had tried to harm him. 

"Don't just stand there, help!" The older shoved the unconscious man out of the way. Remus blinked a few times, shaking himself out of his nostalgic thoughts, "There's another two coming up behind you."

Remus didn't need to be told twice as he swiftly turned and socked the first in the nose - satisfied to hear something crack - before performing a roundhouse kick into the other one's eye. The man cried out in pain as he clutched his bleeding eye, unable to do anything. Remus took the opportunity to shove his knee into his stomach, making the man's breath hitch for a couple seconds. 

After the first guy recovered from his injury, he tried pushing Remus off of his partner. With an annoyed groan, the younger gripped him by the collar of his shirt and threw him with great strength at the other. Both ended up in a pile, moaning in pain but Remus wasn't done yet. The heavy steps of his boots indicated another attack incoming and before the two men could get themselves together, Remus had already stomped them to unconsciousness. He didn't even blink at the sound of multiple bones cracking.

Dee watched as his friend landed kicks left and right, seemingly amused by the sight. Remus had always been brutal - not that Dee minded - and was known for his almost-barbaric ways in underground clubs. The older man loved seeing him in his element. Remus hardly ever lost a fight.

"Dee, I'm done!" 

Without having broken into sweat, Remus wiped his bloody hands on his pants before making his way over to his crush. Together, they went home, leaving the three unconscious men behind. Not like they cared much.

-

"You're back! Guys, Dee and Ree are home!"

Chatter was heard as the two of them descended the stairs into the big tent. Children ran up to them, asking how they were and what they did. The elders stayed in the corners, watching amusedly as the pair was crowded by pesky youngsters.

Three of the children stood out more than the others as they welcomed them back. Dee smiled at the sight of them, they seemed bright and curious as ever.

First, there was Remy. A prankster of the finest art, someone who spent way too much time with Remus. Usually seen with a cheeky grin across his freckled face, even now as he teased the older men about their bloody knuckles.

Then there was Emile. While he hung out a lot with Remy, he was a much sweeter kid. Always ready to help whenever someone needed anything. He was more concerned about their enemies than the pair themselves.

And lastly, Dice. She was younger than both of them but she had lived through some stuff. She's happier than ever now, thanks to her best friends and Dee. The older had picked her up once he saw her and went to his tent, leaving a tired Remus with the other kids.

"Mr. Dee, are you hurt at all?" The girl worried about him as he set her down on his mattress, "Should I get bandages or- or a washcloth-"

"Don't worry, darling. The blood's not mine." 

Dee felt a pang in his chest as he saw her relax at the still very concerning news. Was it guilt? Sadness because she didn't understand that blood-shed was not something one should be calm about?

Whatever it was, Dee didn't want to dwell on it any further. 

A comfortable silence seeped into the tent as Dice helped him clean up his hands. He placed the bloodied cloth aside before ushering the little girl outside. While he loved spending time with her, he needed some time to himself. 

'Just a little quiet with no one else but m-'

"Dee! I'm bored!"

"Fuck me."

"Oh? Sure, but maybe not when everyone's still outside-"

Dee didn't even find the energy to throw the bloodied cloth at his friend, and instead lied down on the mattress. He listened to the soft footsteps as Remus stepped closer to his makeshift bed. Not wanting to make the older any more anxious, he scooted beside him and made sure Dee could see him. He slowly wrapped him up in his arms and rested his head on top of Dee's. 

They didn't speak as they lied there in each other's arms. Dee wanted to say something, wanted to thank the other for the comfort but he couldn't get a single sound out. Remus, for once, didn't seem to mind the silence as he tightened his grip - but not too tight - and nuzzled his mustached face in Dee's hair.

Dee didn't mind it all that much either.

-

The moon shone through the window, directly at the laid-out blueprints on Virgil's desk. His goggles were discarded somewhere behind him as he analyzed the drawings in front of him. Paris was mindlessly floating around the room, making clicking noises as he avoided Roman's hands.

"Come here, you! I want a hug, you piece of metal!"

Paris let out what sounded like an offended noise and only flew further away from the disappointed man. Roman dropped onto Virgil's bed with a huff, leaning against the headboard as he watched his lover stand there - doing nothing - when he could be cuddling him right now. 

"Stormcloud, I want cuddles," Virgil merely blinked but didn't look up from his prints, "Please, I'm dying over here." That seemed to get his attention for a second before he went back to his work.

Roman groaned in annoyance but gave up soon enough. He lied down comfortably under the sheets and waited until his lover went to bed. 

It felt like hours before Paris dropped to his work desk and Virgil changed into bedwear. Smiling in relief, Roman scooted over so Virgil had space - in his own bed, mind you - and didn't hesitate to throw his arms around him once his lover settled under the sheets.

Cuddling into his chest, Roman let out a content sigh as he felt Virgil brush his thin, long fingers in his hair. Through another window, the moon shone down at them and Roman didn't need to look up to know his lover looked gorgeous in the moonlight.

"Any reason you're so clingy tonight?"

Virgil always had bad timing. 

Roman was about to fall asleep before the other broke the silence but he didn't find it in himself to complain. Was he clingy? Was that a bad thing? Did Virgil not like him being clingy? Was he bothering him?

Roman shuffled away from Virgil reluctantly but didn't open his eyes. The younger was probably uncomfortable at their proximity. Virgil let out a small, confused sound at Roman's actions. What had gotten into him?

"Sorry, I just- I felt lonely, I suppose," Roman felt his cheeks burn in embarassment. Why would he open up to him - or anyone, for that matter - like that? That wasn't like him at all.

"Lonely?"

Roman nodded. In his embarassment he didn't notice Virgil pulling him to his chest until he planted a kiss on his forehead. Roman finally looked up at the other - he was right, Virgil was incredibly handsome in the moonlight - and was relieved to see the younger smiling down at him. 

Looks like he was worried over nothing.

"When you're lonely, you just gotta look for me, okay?" Virgil kissed him on the nose this time, "And even when you're not and you just want a hug? I'm here," and he finally closed the distance between them.

Lying there in each other's embrace and kissing as the moonlight shone down at them?

Roman believed he truly wasn't that much of a bother anymore.


	4. chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: stealing, unsympathetic patton (if you feel uncomfortable by this, avoid the part from "he was currently enjoying..." to "patton didn't care about the passerby's stares..."

The streets were filled with people, either hurrying to their jobs or begging for spare change on the ground. Mechanical devices made annoyingly loud noises whenever they moved.

Logan Black was one of those who rushed to their workplaces. As a banker, he had quite a lot of stuff to do - and as much as he disliked leaving Susan, his pet cat - he was dedicated to his job. 

A job he was deeply scared of losing to those machines.

Logan was the kind of person who cared a lot about the environment. One can only imagine his thoughts, seeing as he lived in an overly polluted city. And it was all thanks to those machines. The creators of these gadgets obviously didn't think twice before producing and selling more and more of them. The banker hated them with a burning passion. Everyday, he had to walk past those poor citizens who had lost their job to the devices. Their creators were heartless, bringing them to life and therefore making everyone else's life harder.

And running into that young creator earlier certainly didn't help his mood either.

Trying to ignore those lifeless pests, he increased his pace, eager to arrive to the only peaceful place. For now, at least.

"Mr. Black! There are letters for you on your desk! I made sure no machine took them from you!"

"Good morning, Mr. Black! You've received a couple of phone calls before you arrived. But be careful, phones are types of machines!"

"Mr. Black, there you are! Have you finally quit brooding about machines?"

Needless to say, Logan made quite a name for himself in the bank. He was glad his workdesk was mostly isolated from his colleagues'. His dislike for seemingly useless machinery caused most of his co-workers to tease him for it. Logan believed their jokes weren't even meant lightheartedly anymore.

Choosing to ignore their jabs at him, Logan sat down at his desk - noting that there were, in fact, letters for him - and immediately started working. Skimming through documents here, typing up numbers there, and Logan felt at peace. Nothing relaxed him more than a day at work. 

If you didn't count his annoying colleagues, of course.

Nonetheless, at the bank Logan was distracted enough to stop brooding about the contraptions who were increasing in number. He knew he wasn't alone in his situation. With the help of other protestants, there could be a chance to stop the creations of unhelpful and toxic machines. He swore, one day it would happen.

It had to happen, for the sake of humanity.

-

It was early afternoon, Patton's lunch break.

The day went well for him so far. Many products were sold and no rude customers were met. While selling various gadgets wasn't exactly his dream job, it still earned him a good amount of money and that was all that mattered to him. 

He was currently enjoying a homemade sandwhich with lettuce and ham when he felt something crash into his legs. Looking down, he took note of a little girl, who was blinking in confusion before looking up to him fearfully. He swallowed a bite of ham before he squinted his eyes, glaring down at her harshly. He saw her take a few steps back and he was about to let her leave before he realized what she was holding in her little hands. 

The brown, fake leather was easy for him to recognize as his wallet and Patton immediately reached out to take back what she was trying to steal. Her short hair swished from side to side as she tried holding on to the object while simultaneously kicking at the adult man's legs. Naturally, he was too strong for her and not-so gently ripped the wallet out of her hands.

Deciding it wasn't worth it, the girl turned to run away, but Patton gripped her by the collar before she could get too far. He had enough strength to lift her up in the air while the other hand held tightly onto his wallet; his lunch lying forgotten on the ground. The girl squealed and squirmed in his grip, trying to escape in vain and no matter how much Patton liked kids, he wasn't about to forgive-and-forget a thief. 

"Stealing is bad! Your ears are big enough to comprehend that so get it through your little head: Stealing! Is! Bad!" Patton didn't care about the passerbys' stares and continued to lecture the protesting girl. That was until two other kids ran towards them. The girl seemed to recognize them since she yelled out their names, "Remy! Emile! Help me!"

The older-looking kid took out his slingshot out of his pants pocket and picked up a pebble from the ground, loaded his makeshift-weapon and fired.  
The pebble landed right between Patton's eyes, almost destroying his rather pricy pair of glasses and once he realized what was going on, he gave chase. The little girl - whom he had let go of in his surprise - hid behind the other boy and after the taller kid fired another pebble, they were on their way. 

Patton not too far behind. He was going to give these runts a piece of his mind.

Depending on how far his legs could carry him, anyway.

-

Three children rushed down the stairs of stone, nearing the place they had learned to call home. 

"Glad I had my slingshot with me! That man could've killed you!" Remy jumped over the last two steps, his weapon safely in his back pocket.

The younger girl, Dice, stumbled over the last two steps as she tried to copy her friend, "No way! I could've totally thrown him off his rhythm."

"Both of you did something risky, we should all just be glad nothing worse happened." Emile walked down the last two steps like a normal person would as he shook his head fondly at the two.

However, all three of them knew they were shaken up as their thievery had never come this close to trouble before. In truth, Remy wasn't entirely sure what that man would've done to his best friend if he and Emile weren't there in time. Dice could've never taken a grown adult man in a fight, she was only nine after all. And Emile wished he was more like Remus or Dee. 

Fearless. Brave. Strong.

Emile was none of those, he didn't feel much like it anyway. He was scared of a lot of things; the world was an unpredictable place and danger lurked around every corner in one way or another. Emile didn't have time to be fearless when anything could pop up and attack him or his family at any given time. 

The three of them arrived in The Court amd saw their family pacing around the place, talking and laughing amongst each other. In a corner, hidden behind mulitple handmade baskets, sat Remus. The trio rounded the corner, seeing him wrap bandages around his knuckles. Not an uncommon sight.

The man was covered left and right in bruises but they were well earned. Being an underground ringfighter had its perks and Remus never lost a single fight. They all looked up to him. They wanted to become just as strong as him, especially Remy. The kid dreamed of being a hero one day, someone who could protect his family and though he didn't like to admit it, Remus was exactly that kind of someone. The man had protected and fought for many of their family, the trio included. No wonder he was the leader's second-in-command. Dee didn't trust anyone as much as he trusted Remus and knowing the leader, that was with good reason. 

And so, Remus looked up after wrapping his hands, finally noticing the children's presence, "Hey there," he stood up from where he was sitting with a grunt and approached them, "did you guys bring back any goods?"

The trio looked at each other in silence, not sure whether they should tell him the truth or not. Then Emile - being the voice of reason - admitted, "Actually...we didn't. But not because we're bad at it!" He glanced at his friends before turning back to the man, "There was a man who kinda...grabbed Dice-"

"He what?"

When Emile flinched at Remus' oddly cold tone Dice decided to take care of the situation, "Yeah, some man grabbed me but Remy made him stop!"

"Ye-Yeah, I did! I took my slingshot and went bam! And the guy was like aargh! And then he let go of Dice!"

Remus looked back and forth between the kids and mentally sighed in relief when he couldn't spot any bruises on the girl, "Well, if that's how it went down: Congrats, twerp! You're officially a hero!"

Hearing theat, Remy chose to ignore the insult and silently marveled at being called a hero. He knew he had to do a lot more if he wanted to call himself a hero but hearing it come from his idol's mouth? 

He knew he was on the right path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did you get the john mulaney reference?


End file.
